So the year 2017 was supposed to be a year of retreat and reprieve after 17 consecutive years of reviewing via a variety of websites over the decades. It was time to take a breather and the plan was to finish of my 2016 commitments yet I still found some enticing music seducing my ear drums that it was really quite impossible to take an entire year off. So instead I was very selective in what I chose to review and found the year rejuvenating. So much so that the plan will continue into 2018.

But enough about me and instead how about the music of 2017? Once again we lost many great musicians the most personal ones being Al Jarreau, Tom Petty, Steely Dan’s Walter Becker and Asia/Uriah Heep’s former bass player John Wetton just to name a few reminding us that life waits for no one.

On the upside there was some incredible music released but there was no doubt that the Shine On You Crazy Diamond Award aka Album Of The Year went to Jim Daneker’s incredible solo debut Ad Alta. Nevertheless Tomi Malm’s debut came very close to taking Daneker off his perch.

As always I would like to thank the artists and the labels for willing to risk a critique and also spend part of their promotional budget by investing in a review. This will always be considered an honor and a privilege.

NOTE: Lawrence Blatt and Lawson Rollins titles were released in 2016 and reviewed in 2017 thus why they are ranked here.